Obtaining a Medical

A medical examination from a Transport Canada-approved medical examiner is required before your first solo flight. There are different categories of medical checks, and you must have the appropriate one for your license.

  • Private Pilot License:
    Category 3 or 1
  • Commercial Pilot License:
    Category 1

Don’t worry too much about the exam, you just have to be reasonably fit and healthy. That said, you would be well advised to have your aviation medical completed early in your training in the unlikely event that you are found to be medically unfit to fly solo.


For students coming from outside Canada, medical examiners approved to conduct Canadian medical examinations can be found two ways:

  • By writing to:
    Dr. James M. Wallace (wallacj@tc.gc.ca),
    Tel: 613-990-1310, Fax: 613-990-6623,
    Civil Aviation Medicine (AARGC),
    Transport Canada, Room 600, Centennial Towers,
    200 Kent Street, Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 0N8.
  • By visiting their web site at:
    http://www.tc.gc.ca/aviation/cam/CamSearch.asp


How long is your medical good for? That depends on a few things, including your age and what license you hold:

Private Pilots License-

  • Category 3 medical certificates are valid for five years for those under 40 years of age, and for two years for those over 40. If you obtain a category 1 and don't renew it, it reverts to a cagetory 3.

Commercial Pilots License-

  • Category 1 medical certificates are valid for 1 year for those under 40 years of age, and for 6 months for those over 40.

Click here for a list of Transport Canada-approved medical examiners in the lower mainland.

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